Process for the manufacture of knitted articles such as silk stockings



March 22, 1938 'P. H. E. FLE SCHER PROCESS FOR THE MANUFACTURE"OF KNITTED ARTICLES SUCH AS SILK STOCKINGS Filed April 14, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet l Maich 22, 1938. P. H. E. FLESCHER PROCESS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF KNITTED ARTICLES SUCH AS SILK STOCKINGS Filed April 14, 1237 Patented Mar. 22, 1938 PATENT OFFICE PROCESS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF KNITTED ARTICLES SUCH AS SILK STOCKINGS Pierre Henry Edmondi'lcscher, Paris, France, assignor to Dor & Flls, Fontaine-les-Gres, Aubc, France, a limited company of France Application April 14, 1931, Serial No. 136,736 In France April 15, 1936 6 Claims. (Cl- 66-1) My invention relates to the manufacture of knitted articles, such as ladies silkstockings, and the object of the present invention is to devise a method which will enable such stockings to be made without enlarging the knitting in order to form the pockets of the heel and consequently without necessitating special frames and specially trained operators.

The method according to this invention consists in forming on the knitting frame the rough blank of the stocking in the known manner, in reinforcing the rough blank at the part corresponding to the heel while leaving at this region on the frame the same width of knitting for the heel, and then insubjecting the stocking-to a finishing treatment, that is to say by ironing the stocking held on a former, i. e. by moistening, steaming and heating it, the reinforced. region corresponding to the heel then taking up its deflnite shape.

The method of manufacture and the articles thereby obtained present in addition the features which appear from the appended claims and the following description with reference to the annexed drawings, in which Fig. 1 .shows a flat rough blank of a stocking made in accordance with the new method; Fig. 2 shows the reinforced regions on an enlarged scale; Fig. 3 shows the stocking placed on a former; Fig. 4 shows a portion of the leg and the foot of the final stocking; Figs. 5 and 6 show tubular rough blanks of a stocking.

In order to carry out the process according to the invention and to form a. knitted article, such as a stocking, a-flat rough blank is knitted on a rectilinear frame, the said rough blank presenting regions reinforced by knitting, particularly in the region of the heel.

For this purpose (Figure 1) the rough blank I is knitted in such a way as to form the length of the stocking commencing at the top while effecting only the usual contractions on the frame which are represented by dotted lines in Figure 1; the frame used is consequently a normal mechanism without any complication and necessitates neither any particular attention nor diflicult operation.

In the portion corresponding'to the heel the lateral regions II and II are reinforced by an operation termed strengthening, that is to say' by knitting an auxiliary thread which is superposed on the principal thread of the knitting.

In this way there is obtained a rough blank presenting reinforced lateral regions the contour of which is re resented by the lines I2 I2 these regions do not comprise any special widened part for the position of the heel.

The reinforced regions H It may also be formed by an operation termed "split fashioning; for this purpose the knitting is effected with two threads'of different sizes, viz. a thin ordinary thread, for example of silk, constituting the length of the stocking and a thicket thread constituting the reinforced regions II II of this stocking.

In this operation the two threads (thick thread and thin thread) are superposed on one or a few needles only of the knitted article in order to connect its different parts together as shown at l6 on Figure 2.

In any case the flat rough blank obtained is folded along its line of symmetry and is sewn along its two superposed edges.

The finishing off operation is then proceeded with.

For this purpose the stocking is threaded on particular the reinforced heel then taking up the definite contour of the former.

The stocking finally obtained retains a suitable contourpermitting it to take up perfectly the shape of the leg and the foot as is shown in Figure 4.

Figs. 3 and 4 show in particular that the reinforced region of the knitted article comprises firstly two lateral regions II and H, corresponding to the upper heel and the heel proper, and then a region I4 I4 corresponding to the toes of the foot, the said two regions H II, on the one hand, and I4 I4 on the other hand, being connected to one another by an intermediate region with an elongated curve I2 I2 provided in the region below the foot.

Due to this arrangement, after the completion of the reinforced knitting of the region H ll corresponding to the heel it is possible to resume the knitting of this reinforcement by progressive increases of the reinforced contours up to the toes of the foot.

On the rough blank of Figure 1 this increase in the contours of the reinforced regions is resumed from the points I1 I! up to the toes of the foot ll. The points I1 l1 where this fitted thereon is increase commences are also visible on the finished stocking (Figure 4). I

According to a modification of the invention the knitted article such, as a stocking, is manufactured on a. circular frame, the regions corresponding to the heel being reinforced during the making of the tubular stocking by an operation of strengthening or an operation termed split fashioning without proceeding to the wellknown widening operation obtained by alternate knitting with only half of the needles.

The stocking thus knitted (Figures 5 and 6) presents reinforced regions I 5 corresponding to the heel. The second operation is then proceeded with, which consists in finishing oil! the stocking by engaging it on a former while folding it along the plane ABCD (Figures 5 and 6) and subjecting it to moistening, vaporizing and heating treatments.

The method according to this invention enables the following knitted articles to be produced:--

(a) A flat rough blank (Figure 1 or 2) presenting no widened portion and presenting on the other hand a reinforcement in the region corresponding to the heel;

(b) A tubular rough blank (Figures 5 and 6) presenting in the region corresponding to the heel a continuity of the meshes without any widened portion and a suitable reinforcement;

(c) Stockings with reinforced heels and having shapes obtained without any widened portion by a. suitable reinforcement of certain parts of the stocking during the knitting and by a finishing operation.

1. The method of manufacturing knitted articles such as stockings comprising forming on the frame a rough blank in the known manner, reinforcing the rough blank at the region corresponding to the heel, while leaving at this region on the frame the same width of knitting for the heel, and then subjecting the stocking to a finishing treatment, by ironing the stocking while held on a former i. e. moistening, steaming and heating it, the reinforced region corresponding to the heel then assuming its definite shape.

3. The method of manufacturing knitted articles such as stockings comprising forming on the frame a rough blank in the known manner,

knitting in the region corresponding to the heel an auxiliary thread which is superposed on the principal knitting thread while leaving at said region on the frame the same width of knitting, and thensubjecting the stocking to a finishing treatment, by ironing the stocking while held on a former i. e. moistening, steaming and heating it, the reinforced region corresponding to the heel then assuming its definite shape.

3. The method of manufacturing knitted articles such as stockings comprising forming on the frame a rough blank in the known manner, knitting the region corresponding to the heel by meansof a stronger thread than that used in the other parts, while leaving at said region on the frame the same width of knitting, superposing the thick thread and thin thread on only one or a few needles in order to connect the reinforced region to the other portions and then subjecting the stocking toa finishing treatment,

by ironing the stocking while held on a former,

i. e. moistening, steaming and heating it, the reinforced region corresponding to the heel then assuming its definite shape.

4. The method of manufacturing knitted stockings comprising forming a fiat rough blank on a rectilinear frame, reinforcing the rough blank at the region corresponding to the heel while leaving at said region on the frame the same width of knitting for the heel, and then subjecting said stocking to a finishing treatment, by ironing the stocking while held on a former i. e. moistening, steaming and heating it, the reinforced region corresponding to the heel then assuming its definite shape.

5. The method of manufacturing knitted stockings comprising forming a tubular rough blank on a circular frame, reinforcing the rough blank at the region corresponding to the heel while leaving at said region on the frame the same width of knitting for the heel, and then subjecting the stocking to a finishing treatment, by ironing the stocking while held on a former i. e. moistening, steaming and heating it, the reinforced region corresponding to the heel then assuming its definite shape.

6. The method of manufacturing knitted articles, such as stockings, comprising forming on the framea rough blank in the known manner, successively reinforcing on said blank firstly a region corresponding to the heel while leaving at that region on the frame the same width of knitting, then an intermediate region with an elongated curve, finally a region corresponding to the" toe of the foot, and then subjecting the stocking to a treatment Winning the stocking while held on a former after having moistened, steamed and heated it, the reinforced regions thereby assuming their definite shape.

PIERRE HENRY EDMOND FLESCHER. 

